THE MODERN-DAY THOMAS EDISON WHO INVENTED THE “HOLY GRAIL” OF SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE IN MALI, AFRICA–WITH CNN HERO JOCK BRANDIS

Jock Brandis, Founder of The Full Belly Project Social entrepreneur and CNN Hero Jock Brandis is the founder of The Full Belly Project. He is the winner of the MIT Ideas Award and the Purpose Prize. He is known as the modern-day Thomas Edison, having invented the "holy grail" of sustainable agriculture and more. His universal peanut sheller and other appropriate technologies have helped tens of thousands of people in many countries across the world. His nonprofit organization works out of a factory in Wilmington, North Carolina. Jock Brandis is an old guy with a great sense of humor. He made me laugh out loud many times during the episode in between his inspirational stories. He talks in depth about embracing failure in this episode. This episode is mostly about Jock's involvement with... peanuts! "The peanut (or groundnut as it is called in West Africa) is an important subsistence crop to hundreds of [...]

By | August 30th, 2016|

LIFE AS A SOCIAL ENTREPRENEUR VS. LIFE WORKING FOR A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION—WITH SEBASTIAN AFRICANO

Sebastian Africano, Fuel Efficient Cook Stove Expert Sebastian Africano is the founder of ENASA, a consulting firm for fuel-efficient cooking stoves. He now works for Trees, Water & People in Colorado as their International Director. Sebastian manages TWP's clean cookstove, solar energy and reforestation programs in Central America and Haiti. TWP has planted more than 6 million trees and installed 70,000 fuel efficient cook stoves, 6,000 solar lights, and other appropriate technologies throughout the world. In 2008, Sebastian worked with SHH to replace 30 traditional stoves with 30 fuel-efficient cooking stoves in Honduras. If you're deciding whether to become a social entrepreneur or to work for a traditional non-profit organization, this is your episode. Sebastian talks about and compares his work as a social entrepreneur in Central America and in East Africa vs. his non-profit desk job at TWP. He discusses the lifestyle differences, and the different skills required for the two kinds of work. Listen to it on iTunes, and hit the subscribe button to [...]

By | August 25th, 2016|

HOW TO RUN AN INTERNATIONAL NONPROFIT-ORGANIZATION WHILE WORKING 9-5 —WITH KUNAL DOSHI, FOUNDER OF BRIGHTER CHILDREN

Kunal Doshi, Founder of Brighter Children Social entrepreneur Kunal Doshi is the founder of Brighter Children, a non-profit organization that sponsors educational costs for students around the world who couldn’t otherwise go to school. The Brighter Children team is made up of Millennials looking to make a difference while still working full-time. In this episode, Kunal speaks about how his team--despite their busy schedules--leverages their evenings, weekends, for-profit business skills, and network to fund schools and scholarships for children around the world. We are very lucky to announce that the Villa Soleada Bilingual School is now being sponsored by Brighter Children. Their team will be visiting us in Honduras this year. Listen to it on iTunes, and hit the subscribe button to download future episodes automatically. Stream by clicking here. Download as an MP3 by right-clicking here and choosing “save as.” Show Links for Kunal Doshi Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose by [...]

By | August 23rd, 2016|

HOW ONE GRANDMOTHER FROM ROTARY INTERNATIONAL DISTRIBUTED 56,000 FUEL-EFFICIENT COOKING STOVES IN CENTRAL AMERICA–WITH NANCY HUGHES

Nancy Hughes, Founder of StoveTeam International CNN Hero and social entrepreneur Nancy Hughes is a 73 year-old grandmother and the founder of Stove Team International. They have distributed more than 56,000 fuel-efficient cooking stoves in Mexico, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Honduras. Nancy Hughes was widowed at age 65. In an effort to fight the loss, she went on a medical mission trip to Guatemala. It was there that she witnessed a woman who's hands had been burnt shut for sixteen years. At age two, this Guatemalan had fallen into an open cooking fire. Her team opened up her hands through surgery. Nancy Hughes found out that cooking stoves were a leading cause of death around the world, causing eight times more deaths than malaria. The indoor air pollution caused by the smoke (equivalent to smoking four packs of cigarettes per day) was causing lung disease, asthma, and many health problems, especially for women and [...]

By | August 18th, 2016|

DON’T JUST TOUCH A CHILD’S LIFE, TRANSFORM IT WITH JACOB LIEF, FOUNDER OF UBUNTU EDUCATION FUND

Jacob Lief, Founder of Ubuntu Education Fund Photo by Vance Jacobs Social entrepreneur Jacob Lief started the non-profit organization Ubuntu Education Fund in 1999 at age 20 with the goal of transforming the lives of children in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. His interest for South Africa began on a trip that he took there as a young high school student. Over the years, Ubuntu created a comprehensive, child-centered, community-based development plan for the townships of Port Elizabeth. They provide world-class health and educational support to the orphaned and vulnerable children in Port Elizabeth, including those with HIV. Ubuntu highlights the difference between merely touching a child's life versus transforming it. Listen to it on iTunes, and hit the subscribe button to download future episodes automatically. Stream by clicking here. Download as an MP3 by right-clicking here and choosing “save as.” Buy Jacob Lief's book on Amazon Show Links for Jacob Lief Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada's [...]

By | August 15th, 2016|

HOW A FORMER PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEER SHIPPED OVER 147,000 USED BICYCLES AROUND THE WORLD–with CNN Hero David Schweidenback

CNN Hero David Schweidenback, Founder of Pedals for Progress Social entrepreneur David Schweidenback is the founder of Pedals for Progress, an NGO that collects used bicycles in the US, shipping them out to 38 developing countries. In 25 years, they’ve delivered 147,830 bicycles around the world. This man is a CNN Hero, and his organization has been recognized by Forbes Magazine and the Skoll Foundation, among many others. Listen to it on iTunes, and hit the subscribe button to download future episodes automatically. Stream by clicking here. Download as an MP3 by right-clicking here and choosing “save as.” Show Links for David Schweidenback Small is Beautiful: Economics As If People Mattered by E.F. Schumacher The Bicycle City, the trailer Show Notes & Summary for David Schweidenback Why so many bicycles get throw into the landfills David Schweidenback's first bicycle as a child David Schweidenback's experience with the Peace Corps in Ecuador The most productive man David [...]

By | August 8th, 2016|

ARE YOUR DEVELOPMENT AID PROGRAMS TRULY PARTICIPATORY? With Rye Barcott, US Marine Corps Captain and Co-Founder of Carolina for Kibera

Rye Barcott, Co-Founder of Carolina for Kibera Social entrepreneur Rye Barcott is a captain from the US Marine Corps and the co-founder of Carolina for Kibera (CFK). This NGO leads a massive, community based youth program in Kibera (Kenya), the largest urban slum in Africa. CFK has been awarded by TIME Magazine and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for their nonprofit work in Kenya.   Rye Barcott is the author of the award winning memoir, It Happened On The Way To War: A Marine's Path to Peace. He is the 2006 Person of the Year from ABC World News and is a TED fellow.   Rye started CFK as an undergraduate ROTC student at UNC-Chapel Hill. He grew the nonprofit organization while simultaneously serving in the US Marine Corps in Bosnia, the Horn of Africa, and Iraq. Listen to it on iTunes, and hit the subscribe button to download future episodes automatically. Stream by clicking here. Download as [...]

By | August 5th, 2016|

HOW 14 YEAR OLD YASH GUPTA COLLECTED $1.3M+ WORTH OF EYE GLASSES FOR CHILDREN

Yash Gupta, Founder of Sight Learning CNN Hero Yash Gupta was a freshman in high school when he began collecting used eye glasses to distribute to children around the world who couldn't afford them. Since then, his organization Sight Learning has collected more than 26,000 eye glasses, giving them out in Mexico, Honduras, Haiti, and India. In this episode, Yash talks about the Tae Kwon Do incident that sparked it all, what it was like driving around with his mom to collect the first glasses, and his quest to grow his nonprofit organization while studying full time as a sophomore at the University of Southern California. Listen to it on iTunes, and hit the subscribe button to download future episodes automatically. Stream by clicking here. Download as an MP3 by right-clicking here and choosing “save as.” Show Notes for Yash Gupta How a Tae Kwon Do sparring session sparked a movement What young Yash realized [...]

By | August 3rd, 2016|

HOW A TEACHER IS RESCUING STREET KIDS AND HIS QUEST TO END CHILD SLAVERY AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN VIETNAM

Michael Brosowski, Founder of Blue Dragon Children's Foundation Michael Brosowski, an Australian teacher, arrived in Vietnam in 2002 to work at Hanoi's National University.  He never imagined who he'd begin teaching during his free time: shoeshining boys. Shortly after, he established the Blue Dragon Children's Foundation to help street kids, children with disabilities, children from rural families living in extreme poverty, and victims of human trafficking and slavery. Their aim is to rescue kids from danger, reunite them with their families when they can, and provide all the services needed for recovery and growth. Michael Brosowski is a CNN Hero and has been awarded the UNICEF Zero Award and a Member of the Order of Australia for his impact in Vietnam. They have transformed the lives of more than 68,000 children in Vietnam. Listen to it on iTunes, and hit the subscribe button to download future episodes automatically. Stream by clicking here. Download as an MP3 [...]

By | August 1st, 2016|

How Anne Hallum and AIR planted 4.2 million trees in Central America

Anne Hallum, Founder of Alliance for International Reforestation CNN Hero Anne Hallum was a political science professor at Stetson University in Florida when she was asked to take a group of students on a volunteer trip to Guatemala. It was 1991 and she was going through a difficult personal time of loneliness and loss. The trip to Guatemala was her first time out of the country--and that trip changed everything for Anne. The hunger, malnutrition, and barren mountainsides haunted Anne. The trip inspired her to start the Alliance for International Reforestation (AIR). Anne and AIR worked tirelessly for the last two decades to improve human and environmental health in Guatemala. They have planted more than 4.2 million trees throughout Central America. Listen to it on iTunes, and hit the subscribe button to download future episodes automatically. Stream by clicking here. Download as an MP3 by right-clicking here and choosing “save as.” Show Notes for Anne Hallum [...]

By | July 29th, 2016|